On The Record: The Best Of Denton, August 14, 2009 Page: 14 of 60
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The Politics of Free Speech
In a meeting this month with UNT President
Gretchen Bataille, members of a student free
speech advocacy group were promised an
advanced look at a proposed new UNT free
speech policy soon after it is hammered out.
The agreement came after an hour-long
presentation of demands on July 22 to Bataille
by five students representing the UNT chapters
of Students for a Democratic Society and the
International Socialist Organization. Their list
included changing the current policy to make
the entire campus a free speech zone and to
eliminate the application process for public
gatherings and crowd-size limits.
At the end of the heated conversation,
Bataille said the students - all members of
the UNT Free Speech Coalition - would be
pleased with many of the changes when the
new policy is eventually released. Comment
from the president's office about when the new
policy will be released was not available at the
time of print.
"You may not agree with all of it, but you
will not be disappointed once you get the final
policy," Bataille said. "I am asking you to wait
until we have a drafted policy."
In the meeting, Bataille indicated her sup-
port to broaden the free speech policy.
The students, however, were not satisfied
with being able to review any proposed policy.
Instead, they want a much larger role in devel-
oping the plan, several said.
Garret Graham, a radio, television and film
junior, said after the meeting that he appreci-
ated the chance to talk with Bataille, but said he
believes she had her mind made up before the
meeting.
"We didn't have the discussion we thought
we would," Graham said. "If all she wanted
was our demands, I could have e-mailed them
to her."
From the beginning, Bataille took issue with
the way the students presented their grievances.
"The real bottom line is I don't have dia-
logues with people who have demands,"
Bataille said.
By Stephen Svacina
Special Contributor
Free speech rules
Under current UNT guidelines, groups must make a reservation
two days in advance for one of the six free speech areas on campus
and the school has the right to move events if they interfere with
university operations or the rights of others.
Several points in the groups' demands were already being dis-
cussed during policy development, UNT Chief of Staff Bonita
Hairston said. She declined to comment on the specifics, as the pro-
posed policy is still unofficial.
Additionally, the administration has been researching the free
speech policies in other parts of Texas and elsewhere.
"You don't write policy in a vacuum," Hairston said. "You look at
other universities and institutions."
Other policies
Changes made in 2004 and 2005, respectively, at the University of
Texas and Texas Tech University allow students to congregate on any
part of the campus as long as they pick up abandoned fliers and litera-
ture at the end of the day. Texas Tech still requires application to use
campus grounds, while UT only prefers notification for groups larger
than 50 people.
Still, UNT coalition members are convinced that the university is
legally required to allow them to meet in all areas of the campus with-
out the current limitations.
"It is our position that if these particular demands are not met
that we would consider that a failure of this new free speech policy,"
Graham said.
Bataille, however, said she could not give the students a larger role
in crafting policy and that a number of different student voices must
be taken into account on the free speech issue. She also denied that the
current free speech zones violate the constitution or state laws.
"You can't speak for the entire student body, and you can't speak
for rule of law," she said.
Andrew Teeter, a general studies senior, was disappointed in the
president's reaction to the student group.
"President Bataille wasn't interested in giving the students power to
help create a policy that directly affects their lives," Teeter said.
14
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On The Record: The Best Of Denton, August 14, 2009, periodical, 2009; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth145820/m1/14/: accessed April 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.